Officials says 19 dead over past day in Donetsk region in E. Ukraine

A pro-Russian fighter gestures near a body of a community service worker who was killed during the shelling outside a residential apartment house in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine Tuesday, July 29, 2014. Local residents said it was a shelling from direction of Ukrainian army's positions. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky) (The Associated Press)

KIEV, Ukraine – Officials in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine say 19 people have died in fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists.

The regional administration said Wednesday on its website that 31 people were brought to hospitals with injuries over the previous 24 hours.

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Shells hit apartment buildings in Donetsk, the regional capital, on Tuesday as Ukrainian troops pressed their offensive against the rebels. The government has retaken control of several towns in the region in recent days.

Donetsk, a city of about 1 million, is one of the chief centers for the rebels who have fought a five-month uprising that has left more than 1,100 people dead.